Out of Comfort Zones

"You're really making me feel uncomfortable right now. Can we please just not talk about this any more?"

Walking on Eggshells
I had been sharing my faith with a group of people around my age. This girl had already told me she was an atheist, and I must admit to you, I was a bit out of my own comfort zone. I was not intimidated by her beliefs, but I just don't like to make people feel discomfort. I like people to think I am "Such a nice girl" and that I am "So sweet". We can come up with many different reasons not to share the gospel. Sometimes we just do not want to make others feel uncomfortable though, and we feel like we are walking on eggshells. Whatever our reasons are, we must put them aside. We do not have to feel comfortable or make others comfortable; we just have to be obedient and share the gospel.

Time
I had one evening to spend with these strangers, most of which was quite interrupted. There was only a  short window of time that I could actually talk to these people. As I prepared my mind for the evening, I thought about what I wanted to say to them. I was determined that I would not let my opportunities slip through my fingers. I knew that I would probably never see these people again. Ephesians 5:16 says to "[make] the most of your time because the days are evil." One reason we must not be too concerned with  others' momentary comfort, is because we have limited time with them. We may not ever get another chance to share the gospel, and we cannot count on tomorrow. We must have eternity in view, not just the moment.

Loving Your Neighbors!
Christ did not command us to make others feel comfortable; He commanded us to love others. The most loving thing we can do for another person is to share the gospel with them. We must love them more than we love ourselves, our popularity, and even their opinion of us. Love for others must drive us to share the gospel. If we aren't sharing the gospel, then we do not truly love others.

Our God-given Ministry
What is a Christian's ministry? Are we supposed to end world hunger, lessen poverty levels, care for the sick and the elderly? Yes, we are supposed to do all of these things, but that is not our primary ministry. These causes cannot replace our main ministry. According to scripture Christ, "gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation." Our ministry is to share the gospel! This takes effort and we might not always feel comfortable doing it, but this is the work that God has given us to do.

Squirmy Syndrome
I replied to the girl,"Sure we don't have to talk about this anymore, but please think about what I said, because it doesn't matter what I believe if it's not true. If I didn't believe in gravity and jumped of a building, I'd still have to face the law of gravity. I guess if I die and I'm dead, then I won't even know it. But if I'm right, and you die then you will have to face God on judgement day."OF COURSE SHE WAS UNCOMFORTABLE! She was uncomfortable because her conscience told her that there was a God and she had been suppressing the truth (Romans 1). She knew there was a God but she didn't want there to be one. She was uncomfortable because deep inside she wasn't convinced of her own beliefs. Truly, if I had tried to explain to her that I had a little man who was one inch tall that lived in my pocket she would have laughed. She would not feel uncomfortable at all. She was uncomfortable because she thought she might be wrong and she didn't want what I said to be true. In fact she went to the restroom three times during the fifteen minute period I was sharing the gospel. She literally couldn't stay still.

Do not be surprised if no one claps for you, shouts encore, or ask for your autograph after you share the gospel. Others will probably be uncomfortable, and you may be uncomfortable too. If you share the gospel though, you have been successful! Your job is just to share the gospel faithfully. For some of us, that may be out of our comfort zones. Sometimes Jesus calls us to walk on raging seas though. The key is to fix our eyes on Jesus not the waves. It is outside our comfort zones that miracles happen, and if we fall Jesus is faithful and will pull us up when we call out to Him.

Stand in Awe

Have you ever looked at a small thing that God created, such as a seed, that made you realize the vastness of God? Have you ever marveled at how the seasons take place in order year after year, or have you ever tried to wrap your mind around how a small egg and sperm contain every bit of information for an individual human being? Do you wonder how their are no exact repetitions in snowflake designs or human DNA codes? Have you ever looked at your eye and thought about all that it does? Your eyes are constantly transferring information to your brain and interpreting it! You have to trust your eyes whenever you drive. If they relayed incorrect information to your brain, or if they were too slow at relaying it, you could wreck! Your eyes interpret so much information almost instantaneously! No one has a pair eyes exactly yours! Do you ever consider why your body can repair itself, why your heart beats rhythmically, or why you can remember?

 It amazes me to look at creation, yet how much greater, and complex is The Creator of all things! His ways and thoughts are so much higher than ours we can not even begin to grasp who He is.

Have you ever contemplated the awesomeness of God? Has His infinite power ever baffled you? Did you ever feel as though your brain would explode when you considered that God has always been and will always be? Think about who He is and stand in Awe!

The Power of God

*Hebrews 12:29 "our God is a consuming fire."

*Jeremiah 10:12 "It is He who made the earth by His power, who established the world by His wisdom; and by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens. When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens, and He causes the clouds to ascend from the end of the earth;

¹³ He makes lightning for the rain, and brings out the wind from His storehouses."

*Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

*Hebrews 10:31 "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God."

The Wisdom of God

*1 Corinthians 1:25 "Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men."

*1 Corinthians 3:19 "For the wisdom of the world is foolishness before God. For it is written, ' He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE  WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS'";

*Isaiah 55:8-9 "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the Lord.'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'"

The Holiness of God

*1 Peter 1:6 "For it is written: 'Be holy, because I am holy.' "

*Isaiah 6:3 "And one called out to the another and said, ' Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of host, the whole earth is full of His glory."

The Goodness of God

*Psalm 38:4 "O taste and see that the LORD is good: how blessed is the man who takes refuge in him."

*Psalm 107:1 "Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, For His loving kindness is everlasting.

The Kindness, Love, and Mercy of God

*Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

*Romans 2:4 "Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of god leads you to repentance?"

*John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes on Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

Stand in awe of this AWESOME GOD with me! Praise His name for His wonderful works! Fear the LORD and tremble before him! He is worthy to be praised! (Originally posted on 1/22/13)

Forgiving As We Have Been Forgiven

A Testimony of Forgiveness

Gianna Jessen, the abortion survivor I mentioned in my last post, said of her biological mother, " Her sin almost killed me, but my sin did kill Jesus, and I've been forgiven on the cross, so I can forgive her also." I think we can learn a lot from her example. I have found this to be true as well. If I focus on what I have been forgiven, it is easy to forgive others. Their offenses seem strangely small when I consider how many offenses that Christ covered for me!

The Command to Forgive

Collosians 3:13 "bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you." We should forgive JUST  AS the Lord has forgiven us. He forgave us freely, sacrificially, and without reproach.

Why We Should Forgive

Matthew 18:21-35 "Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’  But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. Then summoning him, his lord *said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart." 

Why Christians Should be The Most Forgiving People

This passage really speaks for itself! How do you think God feels when we will not forgive a smaller debt than we have been forgiven? We are commanded to forgive one another! Scripture also warns us that if we do not forgive others, our Heavenly Father will not forgive us. Christians should just be waiting around every corner, on top of every hill, and in every nation to forgive others. We should be willing to forgive and even glad to do it. We have been forgiven everything so would should be able to  forgive anything! (Originally posted on 2/2/13)

Life- Something I'm Passionate About

Passion and Compassion

I have just finished Jessica Shaver's book Gianna Aborted... and Lived to Tell About It on the life of Gianna Jessen. As I read the book, it sparked a passion and compassion in me. I appreciated that it told the mother's story. It really gave me compassion for Gianna's biological mother, Tina. The book also put a face on the babies that are aborted daily by giving me someone to identify with. As I read about the life of Gianna, I was struck with the fact that her life was almost ended before her story was ever told. She personalized the "blobs of tissue" for me. The book also exposed how her mother had been lied to and was repentant when her baby was born alive. Tina realized what she did was wrong and was truly sorry. I feel deep compassion for women like Tina. I feel deep compassion for anyone who has had an abortion.

Personalized

As I read the book though, I realized that although I already believed in life from conception, it had not really registered in my mind fully. Aborted babies were not personal to me. In a way, I thought of these babies as someone never given a chance to live out their story. What I failed to realize though, was the fact that these babies' stories had already begun. I was against abortion, but I had a misunderstanding. I thought  the babies were alive, but I contradicted myself in thinking they had not been given a chance to live. Life in the womb is still life. It is still a story. It is how everyone's story began.

What Would You Do?

As I sat pondering all of this, I asked myself, "If these are living children, what would I do in any other situation where children were being murdered? If I knew innocent children where being slaughtered legally and that somebody was making a living off of it, I would do something!" What would you do if you knew that children were being murdered in a particular building nearby?  Babies in the womb are alive even though we cannot see them. Abortion is no different. It is the American Holocaust. We must pray, speak, and act!

Something Worth Fighting For

Unborn babies' lives are worth fighting for, but how much more is the life of people's souls! People need the gospel. My life goal is not to end abortion. That will be ended when God comes back. I will give my life for the sake of Christ. If I give my life to any other name or cause, I have only been successful in making an idol. True success was accomplished when Christ triumphed over death on the cross. My life goal is to glorify God and to spread the gospel. There is no greater name nor cause! If you want to live your life well, give it up for the only One who is worthy!

Two Victims

We should stand up for these babies, but never forget we must speak truth to their mothers too! The baby is not the only victim. The mothers are victims to lies! As scripture says " the truth will set you free". These women need to hear the truth.

Concluding Thoughts

I'd like to end with these verses: "Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all the unfortunate.

Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the rights of the afflicted and needy." Proverbs 31:8-9

                              Life is precious, no matter how small!
                           Originally posted on 2/4/13

Judicial Abandonment and Conscience

"Labour to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire called conscience."- President George Washington

What is Conscience

Many of us think of our conscience as the little angel that stands on our shoulder and urges us to do the right thing, while a demon stands on the other and tries to convince us to sin; however, our conscience is something God has given us.There are laws that are written on men's hearts universally, and we know they are wrong to violate. Many have suppressed these truths and tried to ignore them so long that God gives them over to a depraved mind, degrading passions, and to the lust of their hearts. (Rom 1:18-28)

Given Over

In R. C. Spoul's Commentary on Romans, he says of verses 22-25 in chapter 1, "Three times in this passage we read about human beings being given up by God. They are given up to their vile passions, tho lust of the flesh, and their reprobate minds. When God judges people according to the standard of His righteousness, He is declaring that He will not  strive with mankind forever. We hear all the time about God's infinite grace and mercy. I cringe when I hear it. God's mercy is infinite insofar as it is mercy bestowed on us by a Being who is infinite, but when the term infinite is used to describe His mercy rather than His person, I have a problem with it because the Bible makes very clear that there is a limit to God's mercy. There is a limit to His grace, and He is determined not to pour out his mercy on impenitent people forever. There is a time, as the Old Testament repeatedly reports, particularly in the book of the prophet Jeremiah, that God stops being gracious with people, and he gives them over to  their sin. The worst thing that can happen to sinners is to be allowed to go on sinning without any restraint." Sproul is not talking about the grace of God unto salvation, but God's common grace. We cannot loose our salvation; however, God gives people another grace called conscience. He placed this restraint upon us lovingly to spare us the consequences of committing these acts, but when we suppress the truth and will not acknowledge God, He finally removes all restraints.

Judicial Abandonment

Sproul continues,"At the end of the New Testament, in the book of revelation when the description of the last judgement is set forth, God says, 'He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still' (Rev 22:11). God gives people over to what they want. He abandons them to their sinful impulses and removes his  restraints, saying in essence,'If you want to sin, go ahead and sin.' this is what theologians call 'judicial abandonment.' God in his His just judgement abandons the impenitent sinner forever."

Unrestrained

Our conscience can be squelched. I believe this is why George Washington warned us not to go against it. It is a terrible thing to be left to do whatever you please without any restraint! Consider a lion for example. You probably would not go see one at the zoo if it where unrestrained. Why? Because lions by nature are carnivores, and you are considered fair game in their sight! When humans are unrestrained, we do what we do by nature too, namely, sin! Ephesians chapter two says that we are by nature children of wrath! The world would be a nightmare if God put no restraint upon people!

Without Excuse

Not only does your conscience know right from wrong, it also knows there is a God. All men know that God exists. Romans 1:19-21 says," because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened." You will be without excuse on judgement day if you do not honor Him as God, because God "has made it evident to you" that He is God. Atheism is not the belief that there is no god, it is the suppression of the knowledge that there is.

Not Without Hope

We are all guilty of sin and are in desperate need of a savior because the wages of our sin is death. God's wrath against sin must be satisfied. God would not be good if He did not punish sin. We deserve hell, and that is where we will all go unless we believe in Christ and repent. The price for sin had to be paid, so Christ paid that price for us on the cross. He bore all of God's wrath in our place! Jesus says,  "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me."(John 14:6) There is no other way to heaven! Trust in Christ for your righteousness! Ask him to forgive you today! You could die at any moment and be thrust into eternity. If you do this God will give you a new heart with desires to obey Him and eternal life. You will have to face God's righteous judgement! Only Christ' blood can pardon your sin! Call out to Him, and He will save you! (Originally posted on 2/6/13)

Great Quote

"He loves Thee to little, O God, who loves anything beside Thee which he loves not for Thy sake."    Augustine

 Think of those who you consider to be your friends. Are you seeking to gain from them or to give to them? Do you love them because they love you, or do you love them becuase you have been commanded by God to love them? This quote challenged me!

My Favorite Tract

 There is a great tract by Paul Washer that I like to give to the checkers at the store or our waiters. I also leave them in bathroom stalls sometimes. When I hand it to someone, I just say, "This is for you; have a great day!" and then smile. People usually smile back and say "Thank you." Only once has someone refused me. She said," No thanks.", so I just smiled and said, "Okay. Have a great day ma'am!" Many people take them though, and I just pray they will read them and God will prepare thier hearts to recieve the gospel! 

These tracts do not replace one on one witnessing conversations, but I like to use them when I can not share the gospel otherwise; for example, it would not be good to hold up the line behind you at a check out in order to share the gospel. Sometimes I give them to people after I have shared the gospel with them. They are mostly scripture, and that is what I like about them. This is currently my favorite tract! To view them click here.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12 For I am not ashamed to the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Romans 1:16